Home Office

Refugees

lord scriven: To ask Her Majesty's Government how many applications for indefinite leave to remain submitted by refugees have been delayed by the Home Office by at least 12 months since July 2017.

baroness williams of trafford: We do not publish this data for this specific group of applicants but as per the In-Country migration statistics published in May 2018, 99.7% of settlement applications were decided within the six-month service standard. This figure will include applications made by refuges on the Settlement Protection route.The data can be found here: https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/in-country-migration-data-may-2018



UKVI In Country Q1 
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Counter-terrorism

baroness jones of moulsecoomb: To ask Her Majesty's Government whether theyare provided with all documents produced by counter terrorism police as advice to their partners about whether an individual constitutes a terroristor domestic extremist; whether they are consulted prior to the publication of such advice to partners; and whether they can veto or edit the publication both in print or online.

baroness williams of trafford: Counter terrorism police produce assessments of risk. Police retain operational independence for such documents. The Home Office is not provided with all such documents.

Hunt Saboteurs Association

baroness jones of moulsecoomb: To ask Her Majesty's Government whether they are aware of counter terrorism police having labelled the Hunt Saboteurs Association as a domestic extremist organisation in their advice to partners and others regarding the use of symbols.

baroness williams of trafford: These decisions are operational ones for policing. Peaceful protest is a vital part of a democratic society. It is a long-standing tradition in this country that people are free to gather together and to demonstrate their views, provided that they do so within the law.

Radicalism

baroness jones of moulsecoomb: To ask Her Majesty's Government what definition they use to establish which groups the police can reasonably label as domestic extremists; and which groups so labelled do not meet that definition.

baroness williams of trafford: The Government’s definition of extremism is set out in the 2015 Counter-Extremism Strategy. The strategy defines extremism as: ‘the vocal or active opposition to our fundamental values including democracy, the rule of law, individual liberty and the mutual respect and tolerance of different faiths and beliefs. We also regard calls for the death of members of our armed forces as extremist.’There is no legal definition of extremism. It is an operational matter for the police what definitions they choose to use.

Slavery: Agriculture

baroness kennedy of cradley: To ask Her Majesty's Government what steps they are taking to combat modern day slavery in agriculture.

baroness williams of trafford: The Gangmasters and Labour Abuse Authority operates a licensing scheme to regulate businesses that provide temporary labour in high risk sectors in the agricultural, shell fish gathering and food processing and packaging sectors, to protect workers from exploitation. The scheme is underpinned by licensing conditions, which require businesses to comply with employment and other relevant law.In addition, section 54 of the Modern Slavery Act 2015, requires all businesses operating in the UK with a turnover of £36 million or more to report on the steps they are taking to prevent and tackle slavery and human trafficking in their supply chains. While many businesses in the agricultural sector may not meet the turnover threshold, the legislation is having a knock on effect with many large businesses, including supermarket chains, providing support and advice to smaller businesses in their supply chains to improve standards.

Offences against Children

lord pearson of rannoch: To ask Her Majesty's Government what steps, if any, they are taking to refer to the Independent Office for Police Conduct for investigation officers in Greater Manchester Police, Thames Valley Police, West Mercia Police, and Northumbria Police for any failure in their statutory duty to protect children from so-called “grooming gangs”.

lord pearson of rannoch: To ask Her Majesty's Government whether they will set up a national independent inquiry into whether police forces across the country failed to fulfil their statutory duty to protect children from so-called “grooming gangs” during the period 1995 to 2015.

baroness williams of trafford: In March 2015 the Home Office established the Independent Inquiry into Child Sexual Abuse to consider the extent to which institutions – including the police – have failed in their duty to protect children from sexual abuse and exploitation. The Inquiry has announced an investigation examining institutional responses to the sexual exploitation of children by organised networks.This Government attaches the highest priority to tackling child sexual exploitation. We have declared it a national threat and this categorisation remains in force to empower police forces to apply their best skills and expertise to tackle the problem.The Independent Office for Police Conduct operates independently of Government and the Home Secretary does not have the power to refer matters to it for investigation.

Offences against Children

lord pearson of rannoch: To ask Her Majesty's Government what support programmes have been set up for the victims of so-called "grooming gangs"; what has been the cost ofany such programmes; and what compensation, if any, those victims have received.

baroness williams of trafford: This Government attaches the highest priority to tackling all forms of sexual exploitation and to ensuring that all victims, whether they are a child or an adult, get the support they need.In each of the last three years the Government has allocated around £7.2m in funding to sexual violence support services to provide independent, specialist support to female and male victims of sexual violence, including victims of child sexual abuse. This includes £1.7m to rape support services across England and Wales to provide specialist support to victims of child sexual abuse and exploitation. A further £4.7m has been allocated to Police and Crime Commissioners specifically to commission services supporting victims of child sexual abuse and exploitation.In 2017/18 the Criminal Injuries Compensation Scheme paid out £154 million to victims of violent crime, including victims of childhood sexual abuse.

Police: Retirement

lord trefgarne: To ask Her Majesty's Government what is the present retirement age for police officers; and what is their estimate of how many officers (1) reached that age, and (2) retired during the last 12 months.

baroness williams of trafford: The retirement age for police officers depends on their pension scheme. Members of the 1987 Police Pension Scheme can take their pension after thirty years of service. This means that someone joining the scheme at 18 can retire at age 48. The 2006 scheme members’ pension age is 55. And for the 2015 scheme it is 60 years with the option to take it from 55 with actuarial reduction.The Home Office publishes information on the number of police officers who retire, by Police Force Area, in the annual “Police workforce, England and Wales” statistical bulletin. The latest release was published on 19th July, and can be accessed here: https://www.gov.uk/government/statistics/police-workforce-england-and-wales-31-march-2018Table JL4 of the accompanying data tables (see attached) shows the number of police officers who retired in 2017/18.The Home Office also publishes information on the age of officers, which is grouped into the following categories: Under 26, 26 to 40 years old, 41 to 55 years old, and Over 55 years old. The exact age of the officer is not collected.Table D5 of the accompanying data tables at the link above shows the number of officers in each of the four age groups, by rank.Table D5 Age of police officers1, by rank, as at 31 March 2018   England and WalesHeadcountRankAge groupTotalUnder 2626 to 4041 to 55Over 55Constable7,20750,96838,3301,26797,772Sergeant166,80511,57529718,693Inspector31,2094,3111055,628Chief Inspector02341,348211,603Superintendent09878510893Chief Superintendent0152695289Chief Officer012068215All Officers7,22659,33056,8241,713125,093  Notes Excludes British Transport Police and officers seconded out to central services (e.g. the Home Office, the National Crime Agency)..



Table JL4 
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Stats - Police Workforce England & Wales March 18
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White Helmets: Syria

lord truscott: To ask Her Majesty's Government, further to the statement by the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs and the Secretary of State for International Development,Resettlement of White Helmets from Syria, published 22 July, whether there will be comprehensive background checks on those individuals before allowing them, or their family members, to settle in the UK.

baroness williams of trafford: We take the security of our resettlement process extremely seriously. When potential cases are submitted by the UNHCR for consideration, they are carefully screened and considered for suitability for entry to the UK. We take the utmost care to ensure that those people coming here undergo rigorous vetting. We retain the right to reject individuals on security, war crimes or other grounds.

Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government

Islam

lord pearson of rannoch: To ask Her Majesty's Government what assessment, if any, they have made of the influence of the Deobandi movement on madrassas and mosques in the UK.

lord bourne of aberystwyth: The Deobandi movement is part of the rich diversity of the Islamic faith in the UK and its followers play an important role in many mosques and madrassas. As set out in our Integrated Communities Strategy, the Government is firmly committed to the principle of freedom of religion and belief and we are working with local faith institutions to help make sure they are well-equipped to support local faith communities.

Planning Obligations: Rural Areas

the lord bishop of st albans: To ask Her Majesty's Government what assessment they have made of the proposal that rural areas should be exempt from section 106 of the Town and Country Planning Act 1990 as recommended by the Institute for Public Policy Researchin their reportA new rural settlement: fixing the affordable housing crisis in ruralEngland, published in June.

lord bourne of aberystwyth: The revised National Planning Policy Framework was published on 24 July 2018 and sets out the government’s planning policies for England and how these are expected to be applied.This includes policy that provision of affordable housing should not be sought for residential developments that are not major developments, other than in designated rural areas where policies may set out a lower threshold of 5 units or fewer. The national planning policy framework also states that in rural areas planning policies and decisions should be responsive to local circumstances and support housing developments that reflect local needs.Further to this we have set out a new approach to viability. This will mean that developers know the contributions that they are expected to make and local communities are clear about the infrastructure and affordable housing they will get.

Housing: Construction

lord shipley: To ask Her Majesty's Government what assessmentthey have made of the number of new homes built in areas of high flood risk in England in each of the last five years.

lord bourne of aberystwyth: The Department produces statistics on the estimated percentage of new residential addresses created in National Flood Zone 3. Those for England for each year from 2013-14 to 2016-17 period are given in attachedTable 1.Figures for the estimated proportion of dwellings built in England within flood risk areas for years before 2013-14 are given in attached Table 2, these figures are not directly comparable with the latest figures due to an update to the statistics production methodology. To put these figures in context. The total number of new build completions for the last five financial years for which figures are currently available are given in attached Table 3.The revised National Planning Policy Framework clarified the strong planning safeguards against flood risk that are in place. to remove uncertainty and help ensure they are properly implemented. The Framework is clear that local planning authorities should consider the strict tests in national planning policy that protect people and property from flooding, and where these tests are not met, development should not be allowed.Where development in flood risk areas is necessary, national planning policy is clear that it should be safe, resilient and not increase flood risk elsewhere.



Table 1
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Table 2
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table 3
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Housing: Construction

lord shipley: To ask Her Majesty's Government how many (1) cases have been considered, and (2) applications have been approved, by the PlanningInspectorate in relation to applications to build new homes in areas of high flood risk in each of the last five years.

lord bourne of aberystwyth: The Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government does not hold the data requested.

Foreign and Commonwealth Office

Caribbean: Hurricanes and Tornadoes

lord naseby: To ask Her Majesty's Government whether they will publish their report on their successes and failures of the response to Hurricane Irma in 2017 with appropriate redaction of individual names.

lord ahmad of wimbledon: In my response to previous questions by the Noble Lord, I noted that a lessons learnt process had taken place following the 2017 hurricane season involving a range of Departments of Her Majesty's Government, led by the Foreign and Commonwealth Office (FCO). To protect the integrity of this and future lessons learnt processes, the FCO does not propose to make the results externally available. However, the progress made by Departments against actions identified in the lessons learnt exercise was made available to the House in the form of a Written Ministerial Statement on 4 July. On 16 July I held a "drop-in" session for Members of both Houses to discuss hurricane preparation and recovery.

Gaza: Humanitarian Aid

lord ahmed: To ask Her Majesty's Government what representations they have made to the government of Israel regarding the safety of British humanitarian workers travelling to Gaza as part of the Freedom Flotilla; and what responses they have received to any such representations.

lord ahmad of wimbledon: On 30 July, officials from our Embassy in Tel Aviv sought consular access from the Israeli authorities to a British national who was detained aboard the flotilla that was travelling to Gaza. This access was granted. Embassy officials also discussed the travelling flotilla with the Israeli authorities on 6 June. The Foreign and Commonwealth Office advises against all travel to Gaza (including the waters off Gaza).

Imperial Orthodox Palestine Society

the marquess of lothian: To ask Her Majesty's Government what assessment they have made of the activities and purpose of the Imperial Orthodox Palestine Society.

lord ahmad of wimbledon: We have made no assessment of this organisation.

Ministry of Defence

Air Force: Military Bases

baroness kennedy of cradley: To ask Her Majesty's Government how many airbases in the UK have been closed since 2010.

earl howe: Four stations have ceased to operate as airbases since 2010. However, they continue to be operational as part of the Defence estate and two still have active runways.

Women and Equalities

Females: Human Rights

lord taylor of warwick: To ask Her Majesty's Government what assessment they have made of a report from the Equality and Human Rights Commission which suggests that women’s rights, including employment protection rights and funding for women’s services, may be threatened by Brexit.

baroness williams of trafford: The EHRC has submitted this report to the United Nations as part of its work on monitoring the Convention on the Elimination of All forms of Discrimination Against Women.The Government is firmly committed to tackling the major injustices across Great Britain that hold women back, including eliminating violence against women and girls and closing the gender pay gap. We have already made significant progress on safeguarding and improving women’s rights.The draft EU Withdrawal Agreement, once finalised and agreed will allow the UK to continue participation in EU programmes until their closure, including the Rights, Equality and Citizenship Fund, which promotes non-discrimination, combats racism, xenophobia, homophobia and other forms of intolerance as well as promoting rights and equality.This Government has already made a clear commitment to protect workers’ rights, and ensure that they keep pace with the changing labour market, including in our recent white paper on the future relationship between the UK and the EU. We do not need to be part of the EU to have strong protections in the workplace. The UK already goes beyond EU minimum standards in a number of areas, such as entitlement to annual leave, paid maternity leave and parental leave.